Sandal and construction method

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a novel sandal construction using side dowels in a rigid sole with the upper sandal portion inserted into slots in the sole and held in place with the dowels.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

A portion of the disclosure of this patent contains material that is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent files or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to sandals and their construction. In particular, it relates to novel strap attachments and method of making a sandal.

Description of Related Art

Sandals are an open type of footwear, consisting of a sole held to the wearer's foot by straps going over the instep and, sometimes, around the ankle. Sandals can also have a heel or platform and can have soles of varying thicknesses. The common understanding is that a sandal leaves most of the upper part of the foot exposed. People may choose to wear sandals for several reasons, among them comfort in warm weather, economy (sandals tend to require less material than shoes and are usually easier to construct), and as a fashion choice. Usually, people wear sandals in warmer climates or during warmer parts of the year in order to keep their feet cool and dry. The risk of developing athlete's foot is lower than with enclosed shoes, and the wearing of sandals may be part of the treatment regimen for such an infection.

One type of sandal has a rigid sole made of wood, plastic, composites or the like such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,466,580 (Dalbey). The attachment of the upper portion of the sandal to the sole is accomplished by placing the upper sandal portion material along the edge of the sole and nailing it into the sole. Other methods include gluing the upper sandal portion material to the side or top of the sole. While these methods do attach the upper sandal portion to the sole, they pull apart easily and such detachment frequently happens before the shoe wears out. Accordingly, there is still a need for better ways to attach the upper portion to the sole of a sandal.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention solves the above issues as well as others which will become evident from the disclosure herein. In the present invention for a sandal, the upper sandal portion is attached to the rigid sole by a plurality of dowels inserted into the side of the sole pushing some of the upper sandal portion into the dowel hole. In one embodiment, there are a plurality of slots on the upper surface of the sole and the upper sandal portion material inserted in the slot such that the dowel meets the upper sandal portion in the slot rather than on the side of the sole.

Accordingly, in one embodiment, there is a sandal comprising:

-   -   a) a rigid sole portion having sides, a top, and a bottom;     -   b) a flexible material upper sandal portion;     -   c) a plurality of rigid dowels; and     -   d) wherein the upper sandal portion is attached to the rigid         sole by inserting the plurality of dowels into a plurality of         dowel holes in the sole side such that the dowel captures part         of the upper sandal portion in the dowel holes.

In another embodiment, there is a method of making a sandal with a rigid sole and a flexible material upper sandal portion comprising:

-   -   a) positioning a plurality of dowel holes in a side of the rigid         sole; and     -   b) inserting a plurality of dowels into a plurality of dowel         holes in the rigid sole side such that the dowel captures part         of the upper sandal portion in the dowel holes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of an embodiment of the present sandal.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the sandal with upper sandal portion in slots.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the sandal with upper sandal portion positioned on the side of the sole.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

While this invention is susceptible to embodiment in many different forms, there is shown in the drawings and will herein be described in detail specific embodiments, with the understanding that the present disclosure of such embodiments is to be considered as an example of the principles and not intended to limit the invention to the specific embodiments shown and described. In the description below, like reference numerals are used to describe the same, similar or corresponding parts in the several views of the drawings. This detailed description defines the meaning of the terms used herein and specifically describes embodiments in order for those skilled in the art to practice the invention.

Definitions

The terms “about” and “essentially” mean±10 percent.

The terms “a” or “an”, as used herein, are defined as one or as more than one. The term “plurality”, as used herein, is defined as two or as more than two. The term “another”, as used herein, is defined as at least a second or more. The terms “including” and/or “having”, as used herein, are defined as comprising (i.e., open language). The term “coupled”, as used herein, is defined as connected, although not necessarily directly, and not necessarily mechanically.

The term “comprising” is not intended to limit inventions to only claiming the present invention with such comprising language. Any invention using the term comprising could be separated into one or more claims using “consisting” or “consisting of” claim language and is so intended.

Reference throughout this document to “one embodiment”, “certain embodiments”, and “an embodiment” or similar terms means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, the appearances of such phrases or in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments without limitation.

The term “or” as used herein is to be interpreted as an inclusive or meaning any one or any combination. Therefore, “A, B or C” means any of the following: “A; B; C; A and B; A and C; B and C; A, B and C”. An exception to this definition will occur only when a combination of elements, functions, steps or acts are in some way inherently mutually exclusive.

The drawings featured in the figures are for the purpose of illustrating certain convenient embodiments of the present invention, and are not to be considered as limitation thereto. Term “means” preceding a present participle of an operation indicates a desired function for which there is one or more embodiments, i.e., one or more methods, devices, or apparatuses for achieving the desired function and that one skilled in the art could select from these or their equivalent in view of the disclosure herein and use of the term “means” is not intended to be limiting.

As used herein the term “rigid sole portion” refers to a sandal sole made of a stiff, relatively inflexible, material such as wood or very stiff (very little flex during walking in the sandal) plastic. Materials such as leather, flexible plastics, such as found in flip-flop type sandals, and the like would not be included. Stiffness of the material can be achieved by making the sole thick. In one embodiment, the sole of the present invention is at least ¾ inch thick. The thickness also allows enough room to use a dowel of sufficient thickness to be utilized. In some embodiments, the rigid sole can be in multiple pieces or scored to flex without actual flexation of the sole itself such as taught in U.S. Pat. No. 2,466,580 (Dalbey), incorporated herein by reference. The sole top, in one embodiment, has slots for inserting the upper sandal portion, as shown in the Figures.

As used herein the term “upper sandal portion” refers to the flexible material used to wrap or place around the foot and hold the sandal on the foot. It is flexible to be able to wrap around the foot and shaped to hold the foot in place as do all sandals. It could be one, two, or more pieces. In the embodiment of the Figures, 2 pieces are shown. However, the upper sandal portion is designed to either be inserted in slots in the sole or attached to the edge of the sole in either case with dowels. In one embodiment, there are holes, as shown in the Figures, to allow the dowel to pass through the hole to hold the upper sandal portion in place. In addition, in one embodiment, glues and the like can also be utilized to further aid in holding the upper sandal portion on the sole. It can be made of any reasonably flexible material such as leather, plastic, or cloth. In one embodiment, there are laces, buckles, or the like to aid in holding the sandal on the foot.

As used herein the term “rigid dowels” refers to standard wooden, metal, composite (multiple materials, plastic, or other rigid peg (dowel) type device without a head for inserting into drilled holes in the side of the sole which, as shown in the Figures, hold the upper sandal portion in place. In one embodiment, the dowels are standard columnar dowels, as shown in the Figures, but could be any shape. In one embodiment, for every dowel on one side there is a matching one on the other side of the sole. In one embodiment, there are 3 dowels on each side of the sole. In other embodiments, there are from 2 to 6, 8, or 10 dowels.

As used herein the term “dowel holes” refers to holes drilled in the sides of the soles that will snugly fit the dowels sufficiently that the dowel will stay in place once pounded or inserted into the dowel hole.

As used herein the term “attached” refers to the upper sandal portion being fixed to the sole by inserting the plurality of dowels into a plurality of dowel holes in the sole side such that the dowel captures part of the upper sandal portion in the dowel holes. In one embodiment, the dowel passes through a hole in the upper sandal portion and holds it in place.

As used herein the term “capture part of the upper sandal portion in the dowel holes” refers to fixedly attaching the upper sandal portion to the sole utilizing dowels, as shown in the Figures, including the embodiment wherein the dowel passes through a hole in the upper sandal portion to hold it in place and the dowel fits snugly and will not fall out during normal use.

DRAWINGS

Now referring to the drawings, FIG. 1 is an exploded view of an embodiment of a shoe of the invention. In this view, rigid sole 1 has a thick sole 2 in which six dowels 3 (only three shown on one side, identical on other side) are positioned for insertion into dowel holes 5 on side 9 of the sole 1. In this embodiment, the top 7 of sole 2 has slots 8 (two toward the front and two toward the back of the top of the sole). In this view, the upper sandal portion 10 consists of front part 10 a and back part 10 b. The bottom edges 11 each have holes 12 in them. The bottom edges 11 are inserted into slots 8 and dowels 3 inserted into dowel holes 5 and aligned such that the dowels 3 pass through the dowel holes 5 holding the upper sandal portion in place. In this view, a shoelace 13 is also shown for aiding in holding the sandal on the foot of a user. In FIG. 2 we see the assembled sandal shown in FIG. 1.

In FIG. 3 we see a side perspective of a different embodiment of an assembled sandal. In this view, the sandal has the upper sandal portion 30 a and 30 b resting on the edge 32 of the sole of the sandal and attached via dowels 33 in that manner. In this view, we see the sandal on the foot 35 of a user.

Those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains may make modifications resulting in other embodiments employing principles of the present invention without departing from its spirit or characteristics, particularly upon considering the foregoing teachings. Accordingly, the described embodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative, and not restrictive, and the scope of the present invention is, therefore, indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description or drawings. Consequently, while the present invention has been described with reference to particular embodiments, modifications of structure, sequence, materials and the like apparent to those skilled in the art still fall within the scope of the invention as claimed by the applicant. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A sandal comprising: e) a rigid sole portion having sides, a top, and a bottom; f) a flexible material upper sandal portion; g) a plurality of rigid dowels; and h) wherein the upper sandal portion is attached to the rigid sole by inserting the plurality of dowels into a plurality of dowel holes in the sole side such that the dowel captures part of the upper sandal portion in the dowel holes.
 2. The sandal according to claim 1 wherein the sole is wooden, plastic, or a composite.
 3. The sandal according to claim 1 wherein the plurality of dowels are wood, plastic, or a composite.
 4. The sandal according to claim 1 wherein there are slots in the top of the sole for inserting the part of the upper sandal portion that is captured by the dowel.
 5. The sandal according to claim 4 wherein there are holes in the part of the upper sandal portion captured by the dowel for the dowel to pass through.
 6. The sandal according to claim 1 wherein the part of the upper sandal portion that is captured is positioned on the side of the rigid sole.
 7. The sandal according to claim 1 wherein the upper sandal portion is two separate pieces of material.
 8. The sandal according to claim 1 wherein the upper sandal portion is made from at least one of leather, plastic, and cloth.
 9. The sandal according to claim 1 wherein there are shoe laces in the upper sandal portion to aid in attachment of the sandal to a foot.
 10. The sandal according to claim 1 wherein there is at least one shoe buckle on the upper sandal portion to aid in attachment of the shoe to a foot.
 11. The sandal according to claim 1 herein there are 3 to 4 dowels on each side of the sole.
 12. A method of making a sandal with a rigid sole and a flexible material upper sandal portion comprising: c) positioning a plurality of dowel holes in a side of the rigid sole; and d) inserting a plurality of dowels into a plurality of dowel holes in the rigid sole side such that the dowel captures part of the upper sandal portion in the dowel holes. 